1780 Black Camp Rebellion

The 1780 Black Camp Rebellion was a brief Loyalist uprising in Sussex County, Delaware, that occurred during the American Revolutionary War. It was a local reaction to the American War of Independence by Loyalists (called Tories by their opponents) who opposed the independence movement and intended to secure Sussex County for the British.^[1]

The insurrection lasted from July 15 to about August 10, 1780, when pro-American militia forces were sent in to round up and arrest the participants. The insurrectionists were mainly from Cedar Creek and Broadkill Hundreds, and their headquarters were in a swamp about six miles north of Georgetown (an area later settled as Ellendale, Delaware), which was in what had been disputed wilderness territory between Delaware and Maryland.^[1]